If you need to run your car for power for a long time there are some things you need to do to not hurt the gasoline engine: 1) turn the A/C on to put a load on the engine; 2) turn the engine off about every hour or so for 5-10 minutes; and 3) check the engine dashboard to ensure that there are no problems. In the alternative, my neighbor hooks his power inverter to his riding lawn mower with no problems.
I live in hurricane country (6 in the last 11 years) and lose power in every hurricane. Generators are big, expensive and you have to maintain them. A power inverter is the size of a dictionary and requires no maintenance. Making power using your car engine is pretty inefficient, but a whole lot cheaper than buying a generator that you will use for about 24 hours every two years.
On a completely different note, what is going on with these advertisements that show up in our posts? I didn't put them there, but they automatically show up. If Free Republic is getting money for them, then I'll start clicking on them to generate revenue. But it is distracting.
For inverters, the country of origin is not the main issue. You need one that only runs its cooling fan when it gets hot, not all the time like those “Chicago” units from Harbor Freight.
Try to get one that can handle at least 2500 watts from each outlet, so that you can run things like a skillsaw.
Also get a pair of “L16” deep cycle batteries, and a solargiser “battery minder” that will keep them charged when they are sitting unused in the garage. The solargizer has a built-in desulphator which is absolutely necessary for standby batteries.
The generator is usually the better approach for emergencies than the inverter and batteries. You never know how long the power will be down; if it is days, the batteries are out to lunch.
I haven’t seen any ads. I think your puter has the flu.
>> “what is going on with these advertisements that show up in our posts?” <<
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There are no ads. You have picked up a trojan of some kind. Go to AVG free and download!